Bóín & Beach, Ladybird & Bee to premiere on RTÉjr in March

New pre-school series celebrating nature and friendship to launch in Irish language

Produced by Paper Owl Films, Bóín & Beach, Ladybird & Bee - a beautiful series celebrating diversity in nature - premiered in the Irish language on RTÉjr on the 8th March.

With 26 x 2-minute episodes airing daily, the pre-school animated series follows best beasties, ‘Ladybird’ and ‘Bee’, as they explore their home, Wild Meadow.

Bóín & Beach, Ladybird & Bee was commissioned by RTÉjr, receiving additional funding from Northern Ireland Screen’s Irish Language Broadcast Fund and Screen Fund. Produced in Irish, the series will also be released in English later in the year.

‘Ladybird’ will be voiced by 8 ½ year old, Hillary Daly, with ‘Bee’ voiced by 11 year old Aaron Barashi. The whole series is narrated by 7 year old Róise Fields.

As a celebration of biodiversity, the series praises diversity in all things – conveying the key message to preschoolers that as we grow up, we all have a part to play in creating a healthy, happy, balanced world.

Through the loveable characters and the adventures they experience, the audience learns all about different insects in the ecosystem, their purpose and the part they play in nature.

Bóín & Beach, Ladybird & Bee was created and produced sustainably* by Belfast-based children’s TV production company, Paper Owl Films.

Creative Director at Paper Owl Films, Grainne McGuinness, comments:

Airing schedule:

Launched 8th March:

Weekdays: 7am, 8:40am, 2pm, 4:05pm

Saturdays and Sundays: 9am, 11:25am, 12:55pm

Catch up on RTÉ Player.

Suzanne Kelly, Commissioning Editor at RTÉjr. said:

Áine Walsh, Head of Northern Ireland Screen’s Irish Language Broadcast Fund, adds:

Paper Owl Films has delivered a slate of engaging children’s content during the lockdown period - prior to Bóín & Beach, Ladybird & Bee was Sol. Premiered in the Irish language on 21st December 2020, Sol is a poignant children’s story exploring the complexities of grief.

To find out more about Paper Owl Films, visit the website.

ENDS

Notes to editor

*The Albert calculator and sustainable production certification was used to measure and reduce the production’s carbon footprint.

About Paper Owl Films:

Creators of Sol, Paper Owl Films represents a diverse team of creatives bringing content that matters to audiences all over the world. Paper Owl Films Ltd. was founded in 2012 by Grainne McGuinness, Stephen Petticrew and Gavin Halpin, and employs a dedicated collective of storytellers, film makers, animators and creators across their animation and live action collective. Paper Owl specialises in producing content for children and grown-ups across international broadcast and digital platforms. Their work is enjoyed all over the world on channels such as CBeebies, RTÉjr., TG4, BBC, CBC, NBC Universal, Netflix and digital platforms.

About Northern Ireland Screen

Northern Ireland Screen is the government-backed lead agency in Northern Ireland for the film, television and games industries, driving global growth through boosting our economy, celebrating our culture and enhancing our children’s education.

In our strategy, Opening Doors (Phase II), launched in 2018, we have a clear vision to transform the screen industries in Northern Ireland, ensuring that we have the strongest screen industry outside of London in the UK and Ireland within 10 years, supported by vibrant and diverse cultural voices that are recognised and celebrated equally at home and abroad.

This mission, to accelerate the development of a dynamic and sustainable screen industry and culture in Northern Ireland, is supported by intervention in the following areas:

• Production and development funding for film, television and digital content;

• A free information service and production support for filming in Northern Ireland, including locations FAM trips for incoming productions; help with sourcing crews and facilities; studio facilities Titanic Studios and Belfast Harbour Studios, as well as excellent alternative build space;

• Marketing Northern Ireland as a worldwide production location and promoting its product and talent;

• Financial assistance for training and skills development

• Production funding for Irish Language and Ulster-Scots programming

• Investment in film education, heritage and archive, film festivals and cultural cinema.

Northern Ireland Screen is a company limited by guarantee, currently employing 28 people and governed by a board of thirteen directors. The Chairwoman is Rotha Johnston and Kenneth Branagh is Honorary President.

Northern Ireland Screen is funded by the Department for the Economy and by the Department for Communities and is delegated by the Arts Council of NI (ACNI) to administer Lottery funding for film in Northern Ireland.

www.northernirelandscreen.co.uk

The Irish Language Broadcast Fund

The Irish Language Broadcast Fund (ILBF) promotes the production and broadcast of quality Irish language content for an audience in Northern Ireland and beyond and it helps grow the Irish language production sector in Northern Ireland. The Fund finances around 60 hours annually of Irish language content. Development and production funding is available for a wide variety of genres; and broadcast on BBC Northern Ireland, TG4 and RTÉ as well as various digital platforms. The ILBF also provides funding for a range of training initiatives for Irish speakers currently working or aspiring to work in the production sector in Northern Ireland. The Irish Language Broadcast Fund is funded by the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) via the British Film Institute (BFI).